Mrs. Fu, please be mindful of the appropriate boundaries.

Xu Qingcheng hurriedly got into Ye Tinghong's car, her hands trembling.

Ye Tinghong closed the car door and walked around to the other side. When she got in the car, she looked back at Fu Jingting's direction. Their eyes met briefly from a distance.

Even a calm eye contact was enough to make Fu Jingting clench his fists at his sides, so tightly that his whole arm was trembling.

Tang Kejia reached out to hold Fu Jingting's hand, but the man instinctively shook her off, almost knocking her away.

"what!"

Tang Kejia's exclamation brought the man back to his senses. Fu Jingting looked at her silently but did not help her up. Instead, he said to Zhou Qian, "Zhou Qian, take Miss Tang home. Duan Heng and I have other matters to attend to."

Tang Kejia had no choice but to get into the car with Zhou Qian.

Fu Jingting glanced in the direction Xu Qingcheng had left and asked Duan Heng, "What's the situation at Shengshi?"

"Shengshi has been severely injured this time. Qide has seized on the irregularities in Shengshi's asset merger. The huge fine is secondary; the real issue is that Shengshi's current legal representative is Xu Qingcheng. If any improper handling leads to economic crimes, she could face imprisonment." Duan Heng stated realistically that Shengshi will find it difficult to escape this predicament.

Fu Jingting did not expect that Tang Kaiji's condition for Fu Pinxiu was to take over Shengshi. He was not satisfied with the small portion of Shengshi's shares held by Qide, but wanted to swallow Shengshi whole.

Duan Heng knew that Fu Jingting did not want to compromise, but he had no choice but to compromise because of Fu Pinxiu.

However, in Xu Qingcheng's view, this was a joint effort by the Tang and Fu families to devour Shengshi completely.

Fu Jingting closed his eyes briefly, and when he spoke again, his voice was hoarse, "Keep an eye on the situation at Shengshi and report to me promptly."

"Also, I asked you to investigate Tang Kejia last time, to see who she was still in contact with in Ancheng. Did you find out? Tang Kaiji played this move brilliantly, both doing us a favor and swallowing up Shengshi. As for the Jincheng project, Ye Tinghong didn't take this opportunity to seize the share that was originally taken by the Tang family, which is unusual." Fu Jingting interlaced his fingers, his dark eyes unfathomable. "Unless there's some kind of deal between them."

Duan Heng hurriedly handed over the documents in his hand, "Fu Hongxin has been to this hotel a few times, always at night, but there is no check-in information. He must have met someone."

Duan Heng did not continue speaking. Fu Hongxin was very careful, and he did not have conclusive evidence, so he could not speak definitively.

"How about I hire a paparazzi to follow them again?"

Fu Jingting pointed at the documents above and suddenly laughed again, "No need to follow them specifically. Find someone to take pictures of Tang Kejia's actions at the hotel, forge some photos based on Fu Hongxin's height, and send them to Tang Kaiji's wife."

Madam Tang already had a lot of complaints about this illegitimate daughter and had long wanted to get rid of Tang Kejia.

However, Tang Kejia was quite capable, which made Tang Kaiji think highly of her.

The truth is hard to discern, and Fu Jingting doesn't have much time to focus on Tang Kejia. However, "deal with Fu Hongxin's face, but don't alert him."

Duan Heng agreed, "I know that. Fu Hongxin's Golden Domain Charm has a lot of things to dig out, but Fu Hongxin is a cautious man. If we can find something on his side, Fu Minghui won't be able to cause any trouble."

……

Xu Qingcheng remained silent throughout the journey to the hospital.

Her face was very pale, her lips were very red, and she was frighteningly quiet.

Zhao Lan heard from somewhere that something had happened at Shengshi and that Xu Qingcheng was under investigation. In a daze, she fell down the stairs, hit her head, suffered a brain hemorrhage, and fell into a coma.

"Don't worry, Auntie is a lucky person, she'll be fine."

Xu Qingcheng hummed in response. She sat by the hospital bed, motionless like a puppet.

Ye Tinghong was very worried. He put his hand on Qingcheng's shoulder and said, "I'll watch over her. You go and get some rest."

"No need," Xu Qingcheng refused, turning to look at Ye Tinghong. "You don't need to worry about me. Now is not the time for me to fall. I didn't fall when Qingyao had her accident, or when my father had his accident. Do you think you can defeat me now?"

Her voice was cold and clear as ice, quietly stating the facts, but Ye Tinghong felt as if he had been stabbed in the heart.

At that time, he was still her boyfriend. When she needed help the most, when he should have been able to support her the most, he was not there. No matter how many reasons there were, they were all in vain.

As evening approached dinner time, the hospital became busier, with relatives coming and going from ward to ward. Even the corridors smelled of food during dinner time.

Xu Qingcheng suddenly stood up. "Wang Ma, please keep an eye on things for me. I'm going out for a bit."

Xu Qingcheng practically ran out of the inpatient department, only stopping outside. She leaned against a sycamore tree by the roadside, bending down to suppress the sudden surge of nausea. The fresh air that filled her lungs made her feel much better.

Fearing something might have happened to her, Ye Tinghong hurriedly ran over, asking, "What's wrong?"

Xu Qingcheng shook her head, seemingly too weak to even say "I'm fine".

"Let's sit over there for a while." Ye Tinghong pulled her over and made her sit on a bench outside the hospital. "Sit for a bit, I'll go buy you a bottle of water."

The man strode away, and before Xu Qingcheng could even say "No need," he was already far away.

Watching Ye Tinghong's retreating figure, Xu Qingcheng's eyes suddenly stung with tears. Her past love... Back then, just hearing "Tinghong" warmed her heart. But then Qingyao's incident happened, and Xu Qingcheng didn't know how she should continue to interact with him.

A teenager's five-year prison sentence.

My father was so angry that he had a stroke.

The real culprits, however, remain at large.

He was her lover, and the brother Qingyao admired.

Xu Qingcheng was constantly thinking about how to choose between her family and her lover.

Without hesitation, she chose her family and sentenced Ye Tinghong to death.

The driver was Ye Kaihong, along with two of his friends; the car was packed with people.

But in the end, only Qingyao was dragged out to take the blame.

Qingyao, who was drunk and not in his right mind, sat in the driver's seat, awaiting the judgment of the law.

He was not yet eighteen years old. Qingyao had never learned to drive and did not have a driver's license. He did not know how to drive at all, so how could he have tried to drive under those circumstances?

The old man died from secondary injuries.

It wasn't a single collision that killed him; he was hit a second time after seeing that the victim wasn't dead, resulting in his death.

This is not just a traffic accident caused by drunk driving; it is an intentional crime.

Qingyao could not provide any compelling evidence.

Without cameras, and with everyone at the scene insisting it was Qingyao, how can the case be overturned?

Xu Qingcheng was forced into a corner, which is why she filed a formal complaint against Ye Tinghong, hoping to force the Ye family to back down.

However, Xu Qingcheng still has limited bargaining chips.

Ye Tinghong retired from politics, but other than that, it had no impact on the Ye family.

Ye Chengnian, however, greedily wanted to swallow Shengshi whole. He believed that with Xu Shengchang suffering a stroke, Shengshi was facing many problems, and how could a young girl with no experience possibly pull Shengshi back up?

But she's stubbornly held on until now, hasn't she?

Xu Qingcheng laughed abruptly, cupping her face in her hands to suppress the tears welling up in her eyes. Qingyao had once said that if she still loved Ye Tinghong, he could not care.

Because the incident itself has no direct connection with Ye Tinghong.

But how could she continue dating and marrying Qingyao without any burden when the Ye family was in jail?

How could he still accept her after her ruthless report?

Therefore, parting ways became the final outcome.

Before that, Xu Qingcheng had never imagined that she would marry another man or have intimate relations with another man.

But after that, Xu Qingcheng never imagined that she would get back together with Ye Tinghong.

Including now.

She didn't accept Ye Tinghong, but it wasn't purely out of blame.

It's just that our fate has run its course.

All events have both accidental and inevitable aspects.

Xu Qingcheng looked at her hands, staring at the intricate lines on her palms, and suddenly felt a sense of awe at the complexity of life.

This time, her relationship with Fu Jingting should come to an end.

It's not about right or wrong, it's just a difference in perspective.

Ye Tinghong bought water and handed it to her. Xu Qingcheng tried to open it but couldn't, so Ye Tinghong took it from her, opened the mineral water bottle, and handed it to her.

Xu Qingcheng stared blankly at the bottled water he handed her, not touching it for a long time.

It wasn't until Ye Tinghong asked her, "Aren't you going to drink anymore?"

"Drink it." Xu Qingcheng took it.

She took a sip; the weather was just beginning to warm up, but the water was still a bit cold.

She suddenly remembered the time when Ye Wenhan pulled off her earring. At the hospital, he brought her a bottle of mineral water and, seeing that she couldn't open it, he took it and helped her open it.

These kinds of things are forgotten in the blink of an eye.

just.

Xu Qingcheng suddenly looked at Ye Tinghong, "Do you sell candy here?"

"Yes. Do you want some candy? I'll go buy you some."

Xu Qingcheng nodded.

A smile suddenly appeared on Ye Tinghong's face. This was the first time since he returned that Qingcheng had made a request of him that resembled that of a friend. He didn't want her to be polite and distant towards him. He hoped that she could be like before, even if it was an unreasonable request.

This made him feel particularly good.

Ye Tinghong bought a bag of Alpenliebe cigarettes.

Xu Qingcheng looked at the candy, her eyes crinkling with laughter. "Is this the only kind? But I want to eat White Rabbit milk candy."

Ye Tinghong was taken aback. He smiled, as beautiful as the sunset. He reached out and ruffled Xu Qingcheng's hair. "You're becoming more and more like a child as you grow up. I'll go buy you something else later."

Xu Qingcheng hummed in response, her voice choked with emotion, but the man who had turned away hastily did not hear her.

After everyone left, Xu Qingcheng tore open the packaging, took out a piece of candy, and put it in her mouth. The sweet taste filled her entire mouth.

She remembered his embrace and kiss on the hospital rooftop.

He said: "I've heard that I have a special affection for Miss Xu. When Miss Xu encounters trouble, I come to visit her and bring her candy." Isn't that a particularly sweet story?

It's so sweet, but where are you?!

Xu Qingcheng suddenly burst into tears. She bent over, hugged the bag of candy, and cried until her eyes were swollen.

Will there ever be someone in this world who buys her a dazzling array of candies, packing up all the candies in the hospital's mini-supermarket and giving them to her?

Will there be more?

Why does this sugar, which is so sweet, turn into bitterness in her eyes?

When Ye Tinghong returned, he saw Xu Qingcheng sitting there crying uncontrollably.

He walked over with a bag of White Rabbit candies, reached out and pulled her into his arms, gently patting her shoulder, "Cry if you want to."

Zhao Lan fell very hard.

Fu Jingting rushed over as soon as he received the news. He didn't see her in the ward, but he didn't expect to see her here.

Despite the turmoil of anger and jealousy churning within Fu Jingting, she cried so bitterly that he didn't go over and punch Ye Tinghong.

Xu Qingcheng didn't know how long she had been crying, and she felt very embarrassed when she calmed down.

She looked at Ye Tinghong's shirt, which was soaked with her tears, and felt very embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I lost control of my emotions and made it dirty. I'll get you a new one another day."

She politely and deliberately widened the distance between the two of them.

Ye Tinghong silently placed his palm on her head, but said nothing more.

Saying anything would be superfluous. Ye Tinghong understood what she meant. The fact that the two of them had repaired their relationship to this point was already a great step forward.

He was too greedy; he wanted to regain his former beauty.

However, time passes, and people change.

The beauty is changing, and so is he. No one should expect to go back to the past. Standing in the present and looking to the future, as long as there is a little change every day, Ye Tinghong is willing to accompany her and enjoy this change together.

Ye Tinghong looked to the side, but the man who had been standing under the tree shadows had already left.

Fu Jingting's ruthless attack on the Tang family was something Ye Tinghong hadn't expected. It was precisely because he had angered Tang Kaiji that Fu Hongxin had the opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

Otherwise, Fu Pingxiu wouldn't be in such a passive position.

Ye Tinghong asked himself if he could do what Fu Jingting did if he were in a different position.

No matter what Fu Jingting did, in the end he could not save Shengshi from its fate. Just as everyone could have predicted, Shengshi was pushed into the center of the vortex and became the target of the battle.

Xu Qingcheng wiped away her tears and looked at Ye Tinghong. "I've made up my mind about what we discussed before."

The evening breeze ruffled her long hair, which fluttered in the wind. Her face, dry and swollen from tears, held a resolute decision in her watery eyes. She had told her father at his bedside that she would make her own decisions and leave the success or failure to herself.

Fu Jingting, no one should blame anyone for being ruthless.